Joe Muto: Fox News Mole Unmasked, Suspended

by NowPublic Staff | April 11, 2012 at 09:22 am

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Fox News Mole: A Leak in Murdoch's Ship

Gawker has a new contributor: an as-yet-unnamed Fox News mole, who promises to air the dirty laundry that the conservative news network prefers to keep hidden.

[Update: Fox News has unmasked-- and suspended-- the Fox Mole. The mole's name is Joe Muto. This may or may not have been a good move on Fox's part, as Muto doesn't have to worry about anonymity anymore. Joe Muto denied his activity to Fox News' HR team, but confirmed it to the entire internet; surely he'll be fired at his point.]

Hi, Roger. It's Me, Joe: The Fox Mole

The Fox News mole's first post wasn't too illuminating; just a behind-the-scenes video of Mitt Romney talking about horseback riding. The post also outlines why The Fox Mole is mole-ing: the last straw was Fox Nation's ridiculous "Obama Hip-Hop Barbecue" story.

The worst thing about the Hip Hop BBQ incident is that we didn't back away from it. Bill Shine, who is a rather important guy—sort of Roger Ailes' main hatchet man, and the go-between for Ailes and most of the top talent—bafflingly doubled down and defended it. The story still exists on the Fox Nation site, headline and photo montage intact, to this very day.

The Fox Mole's second story is also not too compelling: a sneak peek at the Fox News toilets and the stunning revelation that the company doesn't update its office computers. We're not sure how that separates Fox News from any other company on the face of the Earth.

Come on, Rupert Murdoch's empire is rocked by scandal, and all we're getting stateside are toilet pics?

Meanwhile, Fox News claims to have uncovered the mole, vowing "appropriate legal action". For what? The Fox Mole hasn't even posted anything scandalous yet. The Fox Mole calls bullshit, saying that, if Fox really did unmask him, HR hasn't contacted him yet.

So, who is The Fox Mole? At the moment we don't know, but we are also waiting for a reason to care.